Minimum pool depth for skill practice?

[wnissen]

Lately I've had no opportunity to get in the pool and practice buoyancy, etc. There's a chance I might be going to an AirBnB with a pool. What's the minimum depth to reasonably be able to practice? My buoyancy is decent (on the few occasions during a dive when I'm not able to hover, I make sure to use only a finger to push off) but I don't want to give myself an embolism, either.

 

[tursiops]

Lately I've had no opportunity to get in the pool and practice buoyancy, etc. There's a chance I might be going to an AirBnB with a pool. What's the minimum depth to reasonably be able to practice? My buoyancy is decent (on the few occasions during a dive when I'm not able to hover, I make sure to use only a finger to push off) but I don't want to give myself an embolism, either.

You can practice buoyancy in just a few feet of water, unless you want to do it knees bent and feet up, which might need a little deeper. You can also get an embolism in 4 feet of water, so don't hold your breath if you are floating up!

 

[broncobowsher]

Most modern play pools have a 5' middle section. Around here the most common pool these days is a 3-5-4 with 3 and 4 foot depths at the ends and 5' in the middle. Most people can walk around anywhere in the pool but might have to stretch a little in the middle. That is what you are likely to find.

The 3' is probably a bit shallow, but if you can stay off the bottom and not break the surface, you have some good skills. The 5' is probably where you will spend most of your time, gives you room to work up and down a little. The good part is this shallow stuff is the hardest to dive. If you can get this down, the deep stuff gets easy.

 

[cpace]

Hand signals can be practiced in a 5 gallon bucket.

 

[dalee2]

If you can drown in a few inches of water you can practice in a few inches of water.

 

[Dubious]

Based on my experience I would say around 4 feet is the minimum. I wish I had more depth in my 18' 48" deep Intex pool but I am able to do drills. I do have to watch where my fins end up. They sometimes break the surface.

 

[lowviz]

I have the same (similar) pool. Perfect for buoyancy and trim.

 

[Ayisha]

At least about 4 feet deep but preferably at least 8 or 10 feet deep.

Skills are the most challenging in shallower water, so you don't need a really deep pool to practice. Practicing hovering (static trim), holding stops at various depths, descending and ascending in a controlled manner, and blowing a DSMB or combining some of the above are all great skills to practice in a typical pool. You can use 2 foot increments if the pool is really shallow. Propulsion and compass practice also work well in a shallow pool.

 

[Azraelien]

Did my drysuit confined water sessions in a neighbor's pool... maybe 1.30m shallow end, up to 2m deep end...